Is It Holiday Joy or Holiday Cheer?

I love Christmas.

I love the colors, and the lights, and the food, and the parties.

I feel unusually happy this time of year. Next year has not yet started, and I am hopeful about what is to come (at least until January sets in, but that’s another post).

Most people would define this elated Christmas spirit as joy. After all, that’s a key Christmastime word, especially for Christians. But I think it’s actually something a little bit less than joy, and a little bit more like holiday cheer.

Now don’t get me wrong, holiday cheer is awesome! But joy should not be confused with it, because they are quite different, even though they initially give us that same warm feeling inside.

So first let me define holiday cheer, for those of you wondering. Holiday cheer is that feeling you get when your Christmas tree is decorated to perfection, and there are cookies baking in the oven. It’s that feeling that you get when you walk into a department store and there’s tinsel in every corner, and big wreaths, and lights. It’s your first peppermint mocha of the season.

Holiday cheer is so wonderful, but it is not to be confused with true joy.

True joy can weather any storm.

It is there during the holidays, through the mundane, and even in the deepest pain and suffering.

Joy is powerful.

Joy is more than a season where all seems merry and bright.

It is more than a peppermint mocha, or the beauty of bright lights, or the warmth of a holiday party.

And so I challenge us this season to give true joy the recognition it deserves and not just lump it in with the excitement of the Holidays.

Because true joy cannot be seen very well in the good times, but instead shines brightly in the darkest of places.

I wish you all a season of holiday cheer and a lifetime of joy!